Monday, June 07, 2010

It goes without saying that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan aimed to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza, however – and perhaps without meaning to – he managed to break Iran's blockade of the Arabs.

Before jumping to conclusions, let us try and read the situation today. Following the traditional proclamation "The King is dead. Long live the King!" posters of Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were covered over and replaced with posters of Erdogan. Since every party has a star, the Turkish leader has become the Arab's favorite star for this political season.

Posters are the most revealing means of gauging the public mood in the region, and so in the past posters of Bin Laden could be found everywhere when Al Qaeda was mounting deadly attacks on the West in the name of Palestine and Islam. However following crushing defeats suffered by Al Qaeda, posters of Bin Laden were replaced by posters of Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah enjoyed immense popularity in the wake of Hezbollah's war on Israel, and posters of him could be found everywhere, from on the walls of coffeehouses to plastering the windows of buses.

However Erdogan has taken over from Bin Laden and Nasrallah today, while the Turks have replaced the Iranians, and this is by creating an uproar over the Freedom Flotilla [which was raided by Israel] and by making fiery speeches. This has allowed the Arabs to vent their suppressed feelings of bitterness and resentment, especially as the region had been experiencing a period of dull calm after Hezbollah's guns fell silent, and after Hamas gave up on its principles when it announced last week that it consents to finding a solution through peaceful negotiations, and that it would be willing to accept a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders.

For his part, Erdogan has been escalating the conflict with Israel since the infamous incident at the World Economics Forum in Davos when he clashed with Shimon Peres and walked out of the Forum. The latest example of this conflict can be seen in the Israeli assault on the Gaza-bound [Turkish] aid ship.

However the hot-blooded Turkish rhetoric is different to the Iranian shouting. Turkey did not sever its ties with Israel, and it did not halt its security, military, and political cooperation with Tel Aviv. Israel is also continuing to use Turkish territory and air space for its war games in preparation for a possible war with Iran. The Arabs, however, are not concerned by this, for they are well-accustomed to duplicity.

Erdogan, who wanted to break Israel's blockade of Gaza, broke the Iranian blockade on the Arabs instead, and this is an important event if it truly comes as part of a political project, for this has caused Ahmadinejad's image to fade, and Nasrallah's presence to wane. More than this, the Arab regimes have welcomed the Turkish competition [with Iran]. Are there those who are encouraging Ankara's emergence with the aim of diminishing Iran's presence?

The Arab's problem with Iran playing a leading role is their fear of Tehran, for they believe that Iran is hiding a political agenda that is hostile to their interests. By supporting the Palestinian cause, Tehran is strengthening its staunch ally Hezbollah, and this is with the aim of imposing Iranian hegemony on the entire Arab region. As for Turkey, the most that Ankara could benefit from by raising the Palestinian flag would be by advancing its political status, particularly in the face of deliberate European reluctance [to deal with Turkey]. This does not contract or marginalize Arab interests, unlike the Iranian goal which directly undermines the Arab position.

Some argue that Turkey's appearance on the Arab political scene, despite the fact that this embarrasses Arab regimes, also serves them by keeping Iran's political and propaganda onslaught at bay. It might have occurred to some Arabs, who are being politically besieged by Iran, to attempt to bring in Turkey to counterbalance Tehran. This is in line with the specifications of the new conflict in the region, the most prominent of which is sectarian.

However an opposite point of view sees Turkey as an alarming and additional power in the region that is not a substitute for Iran. They believe that Syria, Tehran's strategic ally, invited Turkey to have a role in the Middle East when it suggested Ankara as mediator for its negotiations with Israel. Without Damascus, Turkey would never have gained a foothold in the Arab world today. So the question is, is Turkey a part of the Iranian axis, or is it part of a plan to exclude the Iranians?

A team of IDF officers, known as the `Mexicans,' helped Singapore establish an army. It was the start of a very special relationship.

Christmas Eve, 1965, is the unofficial date of the start of the great and continuing love story between Israel and Singapore, a love affair that was kept a deep, dark secret. The international press, like the Israeli media, tried to bring the tale to light. Occasionally, scraps of information leaked out; some were published, some were denied, many were disregarded. The Israelis, as usual, wanted to rush to tell all their friends, but managed to overcome that desire. The fear that the thies would be terminated if they became public knowledge had its effect. Israel imposed a total blackout on the story and the secret was preserved. Until the other side could no longer contain itself.

In his book, "From Third World to First: The Singapore Story 1965-2000," published in 2000, Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's founding father and its first prime minister, disclosed the secret that had been kept for almost 40 years: It was the Israel Defense Forces that established the Singaporean army. The Israeli military mission was headed by Yaakov (Jack) Elazari, then a colonel, who was later promoted to brigadier general. After leaving the army, he became a consultant to the Singaporean army. Hedied 15 years ago. "To disguise their presence, we called them `Mexicans.' They looked swarthy enough," Lee wrote.

Singapore's army is today considered the strongest and most advanced of the military forces in Southeast Asia. The alliance between the Israeli and Singaporean defense establishments intensified and expanded, and it now encompasses cooperation between the two countries' military industries, as well. The scope of the deals, according to foreign sources, indicates that the Singaporean army is one of the major clients of Israeli combat means and military technology. Singapore's aircraft industry is cooperating with its Israeli counterpart and with Elbit Systems in upgrading the F-5 warplanes of the Turkish Air Force. A few years ago, Singapore's defense minister revealed that the Gil antitank missile, which is manufactured by Raphael (Israel Armaments Development Authority), was developed in cooperation between the two countries.

Surrounded by Muslims

Lee explained the need to maintain secrecy to his close friend in the leadership, and the first defense minister in his government, Dr. Goh Keng Swee. "We have to ensure, as far as possible, that the arrival of the Israelis will not become public knowledge, in order not to arouse opposition among the Malay Muslims who live in Malaysia and Singapore," the prime minister summed up. That, in essence, is Singapore's problem. The residents of the small island, which has an area of about 670 square kilometers (Israel is 30 times as large), are mainly Chinese, and they live between the two Muslim countries of Malaysia and Indonesia. Life in the shadow of the large Muslim majority and fear of a Malaysian incursion are an integral part of the history of the two countries. Until 1965, Singapore was part of Malaysia. In that year, the British government decided to withdraw from all its colonies east of the Suez Canal. In a rapid process it was decided to sever Singapore from Malaysia and to establish it as a new and separate country.

Singapore declared its independence on August 9, 1965. At the time of its creation, it had only two infantry regiments, which had been established and were commanded by British officers. Two-thirds of the soldiers were not residents of Singapore, and in any event the leaders of the nascent state had no faith in the strength of the minuscule army. The defense minister, Goh, contacted Mordechai Kidron, the former Israeli ambassador to Thailand, and asked for assistance. Kidron arrived in Singapore within days, along with Hezi Carmel of the Mossad. "Goh told us that they think that only Israel, a small country surrounded by Muslim countries, with a strong army, could help them build a small, dynamic army," Carmel says. The two Israelis met with Lee, who writes that he "told Keng Swee to put it on hold until Lal Bahadur Shastri, the prime minister of India, and President Nasser of Egypt replied to my letters seeking their urgent help to build up our armed forces."

It's not clear whether Lee, in fact, believed India and Egypt were capable of, or interested in, building up Singapore's army. Many Israelis believe the two leaders were approached only for appearance's sake. After a few weeks of waiting, India and Egypt congratulated Singapore on its independence but did not offer military aid. Lee ordered Goh to push ahead in contacts with the Israelis.

At the same time, in the wake of reports sent by Kidron and Carmel, the Israeli defense establishment deployed to supply military aid to Singapore. In discussions conducted by the chief of staff, Yitzhak Rabin, with the participation of the deputy chief of staff and head of the Operations Branch, Ezer Weizmann, it was decided to make Major General Rehavam Ze'evi, who was then deputy head of the Operations Branch, responsible for building the Singaporean army. Ze'evi (nicknamed "Gandhi" ) paid a secret visit to Singapore and the preparatory work began on his return. "Gandhi said he wanted to create an ideal army for Singapore, something we hadn't built here," Carmel says. "Instead of setting up a Defense Ministry and a General Staff, Gandhi suggested an integrated organization, a more economical structure. So there wouldn't be too many generals and too few soldiers."

Ze'evi appointed Elazari, who worked under him in the Operations Branch, as head of the team he established. Lieutenant Colonel Yehuda Golan, then-commander of an armored division (he retired from the IDF with the rank of brigadier general), was subsequently added to the team. Some members of the team "concentrated on writing the chapters that dealt with building army bases. I wrote the chapters dealing with the establishment of an infantry," Golan says. Initially they produced the "Brown Book," dealing with combat doctrine, followed by the "Blue Book," dealing with the creation of the Defense Ministry and intelligence bodies. The Brown Book was translated into English and sent to Singapore's government for its perusal. In October 1965, a military delegation from Singapore arrived in Israel.

"The delegation arrived in order to tell us: `Well done, but to implement the book, you are invited to come to Singapore,'" Golan recalls. Prior to setting out, the members of the military mission were invited to the chief of staff's bureau. "Dear friends," Rabin said, "I want you to remember several things. One, we are not going to turn Singapore into an Israeli colony. Your task is to teach them the military profession, to put them on their legs so they can run their own army. Your success will be if at a certain stage they will be able to take the wheel and run the army by themselves. Second, you are not going there in order to command them but to advise them. And third, you are not arms merchants. When you recommend items to procure, use the purest professional military judgment. I want total disregard of their decision as to whether to buy here or elsewhere."